Cows

Our morning and evenings have been revolving around cows these days. I say "ours" but it's really more Joel's days. And since I don't have much else to blog about but still had a desire to let you know we're alive and doing well...here are the cows...

This is Faith the mother of Bella. She is a Jersey/Fresian cross. She is the first one we started milking.

Bella is a beautiful calf and Dara has enjoyed getting to feed her. We don't use a bottle as it's too difficult to train people how to keep them clean. We give her milk out of a pot and she sucks on our finger to get started drinking. She follows everyone around the pen and is just such a nice calf. She stays in this pen all the time so she doesn't get out of the pasture or drink all the milk.

Our other mother is Lassy. She is a Jersey/Fresian cross. Her son, Samson, was born here but he didn't wait for me to get the camera before he was born. I don't have a good picture of Samson, but he is bigger than Bella and is equally friendly. We left him with his mother for a bit over 3 days. Now he keeps Bella company and we feed him from a pot as well. Here is Peace, a Jersey.

She can be a bit too friendly. She loves people and is often pushed aside by us as she tries to push her way into things. She does make us smile and lives up to her name.

This lovely lady is Ginger. She is a Guernsey (sp?) and is due to calf the beginning of next year. We're hoping she will go to a village before too long.

This is Hope. She is another Jersey/Fresian cross. We used to call her trouble because she's quite skittish and ran threw electric fences and stuff when she first arrived. But would you want your name to be "Trouble"? Maybe there is hope for her...thus her name.Ruth was playing with my camera and caught me with my child. Isn't she precious?!

Favorite things

Lately I've had a few of those "light-bulb-over-my-head" moments. So what I may share here is probably what many of you (perhaps even most) have already understood and appreciated.

1) God sent His Son, Jesus, to earth to live as a man. He left the spendor, majesty, and beauty of heaven where everyone knew exactly who He was and gave Him the honor due Him. He came to earth where it is dirty, people whine and fuss, He was spit on and abused, pursued for what He had to offer and not because He was God, He experienced hunger and pain.

This is God's Son we're talking about...His one and only Son. If God loved Him so much and was still willing to allow Him to suffer for the greater glory of God, how is it that I complain about God sending me to Africa?! I really should be grateful that I get to suffer for His glory (and really, is what I'm doing suffering? perhaps "inconvenienced" is a better word) Jesus left heaven and all I've left is America (a far cry from heaven). I really have no room to complain.

2) If it was the knowledge of His Sonship which determined Jesus' actions, shouldn't it also be what motivates and guides me?

These are just a few of the things God has been teaching me....lastly...

"Rain drops on roses....a few of my favorite things"

Food

Most of you know that food has been an issue for our family. Joel has lost a good 30 pounds and Dara has lost about 20 pounds in our first 1 1/2 months! We have all been doing better having settled into a home where we can control the food selection and cooking. Dade even ate cabbage cooked with bacon, onion, and soy sauce!

However, last week our friend Ruth gave us a cup partially filled with roasted termites! Dara was the one most excited about trying them and when no one else was interested in them she was so sad. So sad, in fact, that Joel felt compelled to try them with her. It went so fast, I wasn't able to photograph like I would have liked and he wasn't willing to do it a second time so...here they are...

This is the cup with the termites...

Here is Joel thinking twice about the termite and confirming his love for Dara...

This is while he was chewing what he described later to be "a bit sweet"

but he didn't really focus on it all too much - just got it down.

Then it was Dara's turn, she had a hard enough time eating potatoes and carrots. I really didn't know how she was going to get a bug down her throat.
She was excited and nervous, almost timid.

She was poised and ready...

but couldn't get her hands to let go into her mouth. Her body just couldn't do it, and I couldn't blame her.

Here's a close up of one on a piece of paper. Do you think you could eat it? I'm sure some of you have and my hat is off to you!
On a different food topic, I made cottage cheese today! I wanted to have some for lasagna tonight, and it was really quite simple to do. Dara, who does like cottage cheese, said that it would be good if it was cold (I was too excited for her to try it that I served her a bite immediately after I made it - it was more than luke warm which would be a bit gross) .I feel quite grown up!

4 Month Review

This evening we had a neat opportunity to use the wonder of modern technology and actually call in to Jill's parents church out at Boy's Ranch. While we couldn't hear them and they couldn't ask questions, we at least got to give a semi "live" update. We only had a short window of time, so I decided to write out what I wanted to say. And then, in normal "Joel" fashion, I soon realized that what I wrote far exceeded the time limit I had. So, I scaled it down. However, I realized that there are many more of you that might appreciate what God has been doing here and some of you at Boy's Ranch might appreciate reading the whole thing at your leisure. Here it is....hope it sheds a little light on life during these past four months. Sorry ahead of time for no pictures. I'll post some of the new cows soon!

A LETTER HOME...

We left the US almost 4 months ago to come work with Africa Inland Mission in Mbarara, Uganda. What I wanted to do is give you a very brief recap of those four months – from our arrival in Nairobi, Kenya until now.

After more than 20 hours of traveling we landed in Nairobi with a team of over 20 people and over 50 pieces of luggage. Immediately we noticed different smells and different sights. We spent the first night trying to get rid of the smell of a burnt up fan (that happens when you use the wrong adapter) and then spent the rest of the night hitting a button on a sound device every hour to keep some noise going so the kids would actually sleep. The next day we sat in the room and cried as the kids played on the playground and wondered why God had called us to serve on this continent.

We experienced the uniqueness of bus travel on our way to orientation (did you know you can drive three and sometimes four wide on a two lane road here) and spent three weeks eating the same food day after day. We shared a room with two bunk beds and spent our days listening to people with strange dialects while I had to keep my foot propped up after a terrible ankle twist on a mountain. We struggled through it, shed more tears late at night and again we wondered why God had called us to serve on this continent.

Another flight to Uganda left us worn out. We experienced our first boda ride – which are the bicycle taxis throughout Africa. Kampala, the capital city, was a mess of people and crowds that made you grab your child’s hand just a little tighter and keep the other hand covering your wallet. We laid in bed the night before we left for Mbarara, crying and wondering why God had called us to serve on this continent.

A five hour drive over some of the bumpiest roads we have ever been on (and that includes Louisiana) and we finally arrived in Mbarara. We tried to adjust to yet another place and watched our kids struggle to eat. We had a two week battle with mice and learned to fall asleep to the sqeaking of bats in our attic. We had to learn that people coming to our front door – and even into our bathroom – to ask for money is just part of life here. To say no is hard and sometimes tears flowed freely as we listened to their stories and still wondered why God had called us to serve on this continent.

And then…..last weekend…..I got sick for the first time here (at least the first time I got sick without it being caused by an ankle twist or a tooth problem). Whatever it was, had me laying in bed for two and half days. This has been a hard week as God has used this time to slow me down and help Jill and I refocus on why God did call us to serve on this continent. Yesterday morning, I was visiting with one of the young men we have come to know during our short time here. We talked for four hours. We talked about his life and some of the tough decisions he is facing – not enough money for food; not enough time to take care of his daughter; not enough help from his brother’s family to help him care for his nieces. We dug into God’s Word and talked about the responsibility of a father. We discussed the tough decisions he will have to make, including taking his daughter to live with relatives in the village. I listened as he told me how nothing else mattered except what God had called him to do – to share Christ with those that have never heard. And all of a sudden, I cried and remembered why God had called us to serve on this continent. These are the people He has called us to reach – through discipleship, accountability and evangelism – this is where God has placed us to minister.

We want to always be honest with you about our struggles. Life here is hard (not that we expected it to be easy - and we certainly know what's ahead in Tanzania). There are days we want to pack our bags and head home. Tears flow more freely now than ever before. However, we know that God has called us for this time and to this place and we are willing to stay, even in the hard times, to see His purpose fulfilled in Mbarara, Uganda.

Thank you for being a part of that! Because of your generous giving we now have a vehicle that will allow us to go and visit villages that otherwise, we would not have been able to get to. We now have five new cows as part of the Heifer Project, bringing our total to 8 and one new four day old calf (with two more calves coming before the end of November). Three of the heifers will be delivered to the village within the next 60 days and many of you have helped with both of these needs.

Jill and I have started a coed Bible study on the university campus. We started with 6 and within three weeks have more than doubled to over 12. These students are committed to their walks with the Lord and are committed to bringing friends and seeing this fellowship grow.

Jill is successfully homeschooling both the kids – and even though they won’t tell their mother, they are happier than they have ever been in school and they love their teacher! Both of them are eating new foods and not even complaining about it anymore. They love their new home and all their new pets……8 cows, 1 calf, 3 rabbits, three chickens, some baby chicks, two pigs and a couple of goats.

Because of your support and your prayers, lives are being changed in Mbarara, Uganda. The results are not always what we expect. Ministry here does not always look like what we think it should. However, the overwhelming truth is that God is the same here in Mbarara as He is back home in Texas. Let me close with this quote from Oswald Chambers that I stumbled upon this week….

“A missionary is one who is bound by marriage to the stated mission and purpose of His Lord and Master; he has not to proclaim his own point of view, but is only to proclaim the Lamb of God.”

Please pray for us that we will take every opportunity we are given to proclaim Jesus Christ boldly and know that without your prayers this would all be impossible. We love each of you and are so grateful you are a part of our lives.

Game Park #3

This is the final posting of our game park experience...it was a great time to soak in God's beautiful (some obviously more than others in my book) creatures.

One of the most beautiful is the malachite kingfisher....

another kind - the pied kingfisher

This is a bit blurry as I zoomed in and cropped it, but the fish eagle was one of our favorites. They mate for life and we could seem them purched in pairs all around the lake.

The Long-crested Eagle The water buffalo is a bit more rugged looking, in my opinion. He seemed niether happy to see us or bothered by us. He treated us kind of like a fly - something that interrupted him for a short bit but would be off soon.There were monkeys throughout, but they are fast and have no interest in posing for their picture. I did get lucky and caught this one leaping down from a tree.

These, however, are my favorite monkeys!

The boat ride was a great time to see many birds (all of the birds actually) and many other animals. This baby crocodile was a treat. Apparently crocodiles hide when the boats come around - we saw four - counting ourselves to be quite fortunate. It's a bit difficult to see - its head is on the left-hand side of the picture with its tail in the middle.
This was a female who posed quite nicely.
The hippos were probably my favorite. There were groups/herds/flocks (Does anyone know what a group of hippos is called?) throughout the lake. I was getting a bit disappointed as I thought we'd only get to see their eyes, ears, and nose - just like the zoos back home. But then...
This hippo yawned just for me (at least that's what I told myself as I thanked it very much). The teeth aren't much, but supposedly hippos kill more people than lions each year. (I think that's what I heard)
We saw this big one while walking on a sand bar. Unfortunately, for me, the hippo can move suprisingly fast for its size. It was back in the water before I could get a picture of its body that resembles a large cow.Then it smiled at us as we passed it. I'm not sure if it was saying, "Your welcome for seeing more of a hippo than you ever have before!" or "Ha, Ha! You didn't catch me!"I'll end our posting from our game park adventure with this hippo winking at you.

Game Park #2

This post will be dedicated to the "Pumba" lovers everywhere - I present the "warthog"...It was so funny, when they run - their tails are straight up in the air. Kind of "prissy" for such an unattractive animal.

Later in the day, we took a boat ride around Lake Mburo . While waiting for the boat to be ready we spent time watching the many warthogs that were digging close by. Dara started to walk out towards one when the guide told her to be careful "the warthogs will chase you."

Dade also decided to not get too close.

After the boat ride I saw a group of people walk very close to one particular warthog while it was rooting around for food. Since this one appeared more tame than the others, I decided to stand close by for a picture. I was within a few feet when it lifted its head and snorted at me - resulting in a rather big jump on my part.

Immediately after my picture the same warthog snorted and jumped towards a girl who walked past it - actually hitting her leg! I think I might have passed out - that would have been a good picture! So much for being "tame".

Game Park #1

This past Saturday we went to a nearby game park. We left early in the morning to try and see the animals while the day was cool. Here is a bit of scenery as we traveled. This farm is lovely and is quite uncommon.

The dust flying up from the cars in front of us was very common.

The game park was green almost throughout and we saw many babies. This Impala seemed to pose for us just for a moment before it darted away.

The waterbucks were huge.

I was shocked to realize when we arrived home and I was sorting my pictures that I have so few of the zebras. There were so many I guess I thought I had some close up individuals, but I didn't.

My favorite zebra pictures were of Joel and Dara running with/towards a herd of zebra. I'm sure you're not supposed to do this (we did later learn that a male and female lion have recently moved into the park and you're not supposed to walk around without an armed guard), but ever since a friend of ours did it in Kenya; Joel has been wanting to. So off he went. It's not very easy to see them, thankfully Dara's wearing a pink shirt.

It was humorous to see how 1/2 way through our drive we saw a herd of Ankole cattle. It just struck us as funny. There are so many more pictures, they'll have to come on later posts. (Don't worry, I won't end our trip with a cow!)